1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus which, due to its characteristics, said characteristics being the reduced dimensions and the impossibility of overheating, is able to perform the programmed air conditioning of small fixed or mobile environments in a totally self-contained manner.
Said apparatus is based on the appropriate exploitation of the Peltier effect which can be seen in certain bi- or plurimetallic alloys, in which the application of a voltage difference creates displacement of the free electrons and valence electrons from lower energy bands to upper energy bands, with the pumping of energy, in the form of heat, from a high temperature electrode to one of low temperature.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The cooling and air conditioning apparatus presently known are of a macroscopic type and have dimensions such as not to allow their direct application to self-contained mini-systems; furthermore said devices contain notable quantities of closed circuit cooling fluids, which also limit their use due to toxicity. In effect the limiting fact of containing said fluids entails a series of problems both during construction and during use; furthermore, said limits impose dimensions which cannot be reduced below certain limits, and therefore a limited applicability in specific operational problems. Said apparatuses operate essentially in fixed structures of considerable size requiring a power supply of adequate dimensions and characteristics; as regards the semi-fixed devices known, it is noted that, these being also conceived in a traditional manner, they have the same limitations in terms of parts, size and power supply.
Returning to the Peltier effect mentioned above, which is the basis of the present invention, and to the metallic alloys above, it is opportune to underline that these alloys, in a paracircuital form, are available with short distances between the electrodes and with small dimensions and are arranged in small blocks, series/parallel, between two electrically insulating ceramic plates, in such a way that the heat energy is pumped from the low temperature plate to the high temperature one, thus providing a cooling effect. As the plates are made of ceramic, they present a low thermal conductivity, for which reason they are generally extremely thin and covered on the outside by a thin layer of material having a high thermal conductivity, such as aluminium, for example.
Peltier plates of different kinds, with different power supplies and performances have been available on the market for some time, but their application in the field of cooling has always been limited to low-rate heat transfers and the devices using them are of small volume and lightly refrigerated for leasure use or light pharmaceutical use.